The present invention relates to a new and useful method and apparatus for applying a dressing such as mineral oil or the like, to the surface of bowling lanes, in a desired pattern for the dressing cross and along the lane.
Rules concerning the application of dressing in a lateral pattern across bowling lanes have been established by the American Bowling Congress. Such dressing is usually in the form of an oil, such as a mineral oil, and is used to protect the surface of the bowling lane from ball impact and friction.
Various types of bowling lane oiling machines and other liquid applying machines for use on planar surfaces, are known.
Bowling lane oiling machines are disclosed, for example, in U.S. Pat. No. 5,679,162, U.S. Pat. No. 5,517,709 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,455,977, all issued to Caffrey et al. and assigned to AMF Bowling, Inc. These patents disclose a bowling lane dressing applicator which moves between the foul line and pin pit, applying dressing, or oil, across the width of the lane as it moves.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,650,012 to Davis teaches a variable speed bowling lane maintenance machine. The machine can be used to apply lane dressing or to clean the lane and may be moved at variable speeds during application to change the oiled lane profile.
Oiling machines which control the amount of lane dressing applied by controlling the contact of a wick with the applicator member are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,274,871 to Smith et al., assigned to AMF Bowling, Inc., and U.S. Pat. No. 5,181,290 to Davis et al. U.S. Pat. No. 4,980,815 and its Reexamination Certificate B1 4,980,815 assigned to The Kegel Company, Inc. are also relevant for their disclosure of a bowling lane dressing device which, in one embodiment, uses a nozzle which sprays dressing onto an applicator, the applicator in turn applying the dressing to the bowling lane. The applicator is in the form of a drum which receives the dressing and then rolls it onto the bowling lane. It has never been practical to spray dressing directly onto the bowling lane.
A manual applicator for applying a liquid in a coating on a planar surface is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,050,530 to Studebaker et al. The applicator has a reservoir for holding the liquid being applied. The liquid is dispensed adjacent a pair of parallel wick pads oriented perpendicular to the direction of movement. The wick pads spread the dispensed liquid as the applicator is pulled over the liquid.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,766,016 and 4,727,615 to Kubo teach bowling lane dressing applicators using a biasing means, such as a spring or air cylinders, to position the applicator to provide a thin, uniform coating.
A track-mounted applicator and cleaner for bowling lanes is disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,134,361 to Benjamin. The applicator has two rollers which are brought into contact with the bowling lane at the pit end, moved to the foul line to clean the lane, and back to the pit again while applying lane oil. Oil is metered to the applicator to ensure even coating.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,785,001 issued to Niemi et al. and assigned to Brunswick Corporation, discloses a bowling lane finish applicator.
Other patent disclosing bowling lane oil applicators include U.S. Pat. No. 3,319,600 to Regan, U.S. Pat. No. 3,273,532 to Brzuskiewicz et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,240,184 to Le Mieux et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,042,950 to Ludwig et al. and U.S. Pat. No. 2,763,019 to Huber. Each of these applicators is manually operated and the coating is applied to the bowling lane by pads or dispensed liquid is spread by a blade.
Other devices are also known for applying a coating liquid to a floor. See, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,109,790 and 5,109,791, both to Matsumoto et al. These patents disclose a vehicle which can be driven across a floor in a foward direction. A liquid feed device is mounted for transverse movement on the vehicle and, with forward movement of the vehicle and transverse movement of the feed device, a zig-zag pattern of liquid can be laid onto the floor surface.
The foregoing patents to Matsumoto, et al are not adapted for applying dressing to a bowling lane nor do they teach or suggest how different thicknesses of dressing can be applied with a specific profile across the width of the bowling lane.
The inventors are generally aware of prior art whereby a spray head reciprocates back and forth across the top of a roller for applying bowling lane dressing to the roller, the roller thereafter being rolled into contact with the lane for applying the dressing to the lane. It is not known whether the dressing can be applied with a selected pattern across the width of the lane, nor how this can be done with the known apparatus.